Nashville's ORIGINAL Kettlebell Bootcamp
Led by David Whitley, Sr. RKC.

Monday, January 5, 2009

Nashville Kettlebell Bootcamp Roadmap and Contest

Next week the Nashville Kettlebell Bootcamp will begin a contest. While the people who devote themselves to this contest will no doubt lose bodyfat and get stronger, feel better and look better naked, this contest is not like the "Biggest Loser" shows or the transformation contests you see in magazines.

This contest will be judged on WHAT you do, not how you wind up looking.

The focus will be on changing the behaviors that got you out of shape to begin with. I'll be handing out hard copy of the following Roadmap in class this week to everyone. I'll make a post about prizes later this week, I am still working out a few details . The contest winner will be the person with the highest score at on April 10th, 2009.

Nashville Kettlebell Success Road Map 101

Outlined here is a strategically designed to-do list combined with a scoring system to give you regular feedback on your progress at completing a variety of activities. This has been specifically designed for maximum impact on your fat loss and fitness efforts.

There are 101 possible weekly points. You should strive to score 101 and definitely no less than 90 each and every week if you are truly committed to reaching your goals, winning the contest and becoming a success story.

There are two different categories: Daily Activities and Weekly Activities.

You simply do the activities and then write down the point value for each activity. The closer you get to a perfect score each week, the faster you’ll reach your goals.Imagine you were planning a long cross-country drive. You would need to know three things:1. Where are you going?2. How do you get there?3. Are you on the right course?

Consider this list your road map. Just as you would use a map to plan the route, you can use this information to see where you are going, how far you have come and to make sure you are still on the right road to get there. If you get off track on your long drive, you immediately consult the map and get back on the right road.

Daily Activities

1. Eat every 2 to 4 hours or 5-6 small meals throughout the day.In order to keep your metabolism burning strong you must feed the machine that is your body. One way to do this is to eat several small meals at regular intervals throughout the day.

Skipping meals or not eating enough will not keep your metabolism burning high and will compromise your fat loss efforts. Make sure you eat!Daily points: 1 point for each day you eat at least 5 small meals

2. Consume some protein and vegetable every time you eat. Vegetables, proteins and fruit are the most important parts of your nutrition plan. The nutrient density of veggies and the thermic effect (the amount of energy required for digestion) that protein offers you is vital to keeping your metabolism running high. The thermic effect of veggies are nothing to scoff at either, some are almost equal to proteins. Eat some fruit too, but focus on vegetables since they contain less sugar.

Daily points: 1 point for each day you eat a protein AND a vegetable with each meal.

3. Get at least 3 training sessions every week. The simplest way to do this is just come to class and do the work! Our kettlebell workouts use full-body movements and are performed with minimal rest.

Swing and snatch interval training is the time efficient cardio of choice for successful fat loss clients. In study after study measuring fat loss, interval training has destroyed long steady state cardio, burning up to NINE times more bodyfat. Put them together and you have a very powerful method for shedding excess body fat and getting strong.

But what about the bootcamp off-weeks? The off weeks are designed in part to give you some recovery. Get in some physical activity like walking, swimming, playing a sport, a yoga class, etc. a couple time during that week. If we have an extra class, try to be there.Daily points: 3 points for every day you come to class and complete an optimized kettlebell workout session.

4. Review your goals EVERY day. I cannot over-emphasize the importance of this. This is the fuel that keeps the entire process moving. The more often you read your goals the more often they will be in the forefront of your mind and will dictate all of your actions.

Even more powerful than that is to write and read an affirmation as if it has already happened. This will program your mind to believe it has already happened. How can you fail at something that has already happened? The best time to do this is just after you wake up and just before you go to sleep. Visualize how you will look, feel and perform as you drift of into dream land….Daily points: 1 point for every day you review your goals

5. Log food into a food journal to check progress.Immediate feedback is very beneficial. Seeing any errors make helps you make corrections quickly so that you can get the most out of your actions. Using a food journal gives you immediate feedback as to where you need help and where you are doing well.

I recommend http://www.fitday.com/. Once you create a free account there, you will make it public and email it to me, so that I can see what is going on and we can make any necessary changes.

You won't have to wonder if you are doing well and are on track, it will tell you in black and white.

Daily points: 2 points for every day you log your food intake in a food journal.

6. Have a multivitamin every day

Taking a multivitamin will greatly increase your chances for success. Your diet will almost never cover all the bases that your body needs for optimal health, especially if you are restricting calorie intake. Take a quality multivitamin that is whole food based and digests well within the body. This will ensure that all of your bases are covered.

The best supplements I have found are made by a company called Prograde. They are only available through fitness professionals. HERE is the link to use to check out their products.

Daily points: 1 point for every day you consume a multivitamin

Weekly Activities

1. Plan Meals for the Week. Planning is vital to your success. It gives you direction (like a roadmap) so you just follow it without thinking. Take an hour one day a week and plan your meals for the entire week (usually before going grocery shopping), and you will stay consistent much more often than if you decide to 'wing it' with your planning. The old saying is true: If you fail to plan then plan to fail.

Weekly points: 10 points for each week you plan your meals for the week

2. Cook food in bulk and package for quick preparation. Planning to have meals is great but if you are in a rush and “don't feel like cooking” then you will turn to quicker, less healthy alternatives. Take one or two hours out of your Sunday and cook, chop, and package your planned meals for the week (done after grocery shopping). When all of your food is cooked and prepared, you are truly organized:) And it won't matter if you are in a hurry or not, the food will be ready and will take 1/2 the time (or less) to get it prepared or packed.

Weekly points: 10 points for every week you cook your meals ahead of time

3. Set a personal record in your workoutEach week find a place in your workout to set a personal best. It might be a heavier weight, more reps in a given time frame, etc. It doesn't matter as much as doing something this week that you couldn’t get last week.

Find one thing each week to set a personal best at and go after it. This will help you improve your performance, calorie output, and keep the program exciting and effective. Most importantly, it will give you an immediate, tangible result and feeling of accomplishment each week when you know you did something today that you could not do last weekWeekly points: 5 points for each week you make an attempt to set a personal best. 10 points when you hit it.

4. Try a new healthy food. Food variety is important for the same reasons that exercise variety is. You create excitement mentally and you will get nutrients from a different source of food. You may love spinach if you have never tried it before.

Weekly points: 10 points for each week you try a new healthy food

5. Talk to someone about your goals and using your support system. A support system is an important part of your plan for success. You don’t have to do this alone! By telling someone about your goals, you are verbally declaring yourself responsible for achieving that goal. Accountability can help dramatically when times get tough.

Choose wisely though! The people you tell should be those that will help you stay accountable through tough times and will be a positive influence on you when you succeed. Someone who says, 'Aw, its ok, you have been so good, just have this piece of pie. You can get back on track tomorrow', is NOT someone you can rely on.

I recommend you take advantage of our private Ning site. Everyone on the site is either in the Nashville Kettlebell Bootcamp class or invited by me to be a part of the community. Email me if you haven't joined yet.

Weekly points: 10 points for each week you log on to the Ning site and talk about your goals.

There you have it. The Nashville Kettlebell Success Roadmap 101. Following these guidelines and using a point system to give you immediate feedback on how you are doing gives you an additional sense of accountability and puts the responsibility in your hands to either succeed or not. Make today better than yesterday. Let's rock.